SALMA HAYEK BIOGRAPHYSalma Hayek was born on September 2, 1966, as Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez-Pinault to Spanish opera singer, Diana Jiménez Medina and Lebanese oil company executive, Sami Hayek Dominguez in Coatzacoalcos (Veracruz, Mexico). She was raised as a Roman Catholic and went to the Academy of the Sacred Hearts in New Orleans (Louisiana) when she was twelve years old. During this time and for most of her teenage years, she stayed in Houston with her aunt. She studied International Relations at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City for some time before dropping out. While she was still in school, she was diagnosed as suffering from dyslexia.
Career and Hollywood Break
Her first brush with fame came in 1989 when she starred as the titular character in the Mexican short run television series Teresa. This brief stint on television, made Salma, only 23 years old then, a star all over Mexico. Thereafter, she moved to Los Angeles so that she could improve her English in order to give shape to her dreams of making it big as a successful, famous actress in Hollywood. Salma Hayek got her first lead role in Hollywood opposite Antonio Banderas in the 1995 blockbuster Desperado, which was directed by Robert Rodriguez and produced by his wife Elizabeth Avellan. Although her Hollywood debut, Desperado was her second motion picture after the multiple award winning Mexican blockbuster film El Callejon de los Milagros. She received an Ariel Award nomination in the category of Best Actress for this movie.
There was no looking back for her after the success of Desperado. Salma Hayek, the actress, the star, the personification of glamor and sensuality, had arrived. Fair Game happened next, followed by the likes of From Dusk Till Dawn, Fools Rush In and Wild Wild West. By this time, she had carved a niche for herself in Hollywood. She became one with the glitz and glamor of celebrity-hood while, at the same time, maintaining a rare class of her own.
Film Production and Other Works
The year 2000 marks the beginnings of a new chapter in this Salma Hayek biography as around this time, Salma Hayek laid the foundations of her production company, Ventanarosa. The idea of film production was there in her mind for some time but the idea of starting her own production company became stronger when she produced El Coronel No Tiene Quien Le Escriba, which ended up as Mexico's official entry to the Oscars in the Best Foreign Film category. Subsequently, she got involved in a lot of film production ventures such as Frida, In The Time of the Butterflies and the Maldonado Miracle (which she herself directed). She is also an executive producer of the television series Ugly Betty. Talented to the core as she is, Salma Hayek has also recorded songs for the movies Desperado, Frida and Once Upon a Time In Mexico. She has modeled for luxury brands like Chopard and Campari.
Charitable Activities
Salma Hayek is a veteran activist on spreading awareness on issues like violence against women, and discriminatory treatment of immigrants. Since long, she has been actively involved in the cause of institutions that provide shelter to battered women and victims of domestic violence. She is a proactive advocate of breastfeeding and has organized many campaigns to spread awareness regarding the benefits of breastfeeding.
Salma Hayek Filmography
Here is a list of Hollywood movies that Salma Hayek Starred in since her Hollywood debut in 1995. Check out the following filmography to trace the journey of this gorgeous Latina beauty into the hearts of the global audience:-
* Desperado
* Fair Game
* From dusk Till Dawn
* Follow Me Home
* Fled
* Breaking Up
* Fools Rush In
* Studio 54
* The Hunchback
* The Faculty
* The Velocity of Gary
* Wild Wild West
* Dogma
* Chain of Fools
* Timecode
* Hotel
* Traffic
* Frida
* In The Time Of The Butterflies
* Once Upon A Time in Mexico
* Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over
* Ask the Dust
* After the Sunset
* Lonely Hearts
* Bandidas
* Cirque Du Freak: the Vampire's Assistant
* Across The Universe
* Grown Ups
